I never really thought I would become a stay-at-home dad, but that is exactly what happened. My wife and I recently had our first child, a baby boy. He is six months old now, and I have been home with him for about four weeks.

I always thought of myself as the traditional dad. I go to work, make the money, and support the family. However, that scenario never really played out. We were always a dual income family. My wife is an Occupational Therapist, and I was a Golf Professional. As a golf pro, as some of you may know, the majority of my life was spent at the golf course. Golf courses are open 365 days per year. That doesn’t leave much time for family. This was not an environment we wanted for our son.

When he was born, we had some serious decisions to make. How were we going to raise our son and support ourselves? Do we use daycare? Do we hire a nanny? Does one of us stay home? The choice was a difficult one, but it had to made. Daycare seemed like a safe option, however the germs, number of kids in each room, and cost really soured us on that option. Plus, it was going to cost $262/wk regardless of the number of days he would attend. The nanny was the more nurturing option, but our search turned up nothing but disappointment. Canceled interviews, no experience, couldn’t speak English, the list goes on. The kicker is they wanted $12 to $15 per hour, which was more than daycare. Besides, who really knows what kind of people you’re dealing with. I know there are Nanny services, who claim to do background checks. But I’ve heard many complaints about them too. Plus, they want a commission(finders fee) ranging from $500 to $2000. No thanks. It turns out the best option for us was for one of us to stay home. My wife has the greatest earning potential, which still offered a family friendly schedule. My job just didn’t have that potential.

Although this has created some financial stress, we still believe it is the right decision for our family. We felt having a parent home was very important for his upbringing. That may change as he gets older, as may the roles of my wife and I. But for now we are going to stick to this plan as long as we can. Life plans change as do business plans. You have to constantly reevaluate your progress and make changes as needed. We are going to survive this down economy with a strong family unit. Right now our family’s success is priority number one.

Our situation is obviously not going to work for everyone. Each home has different needs, and each person has different beliefs. Therefore, it takes some serious consideration to come up with the best scenario for you. I just know seeing him grow in a safe and familiar environment, is definitely worth the sacrifice.